


Stranger To This Feeling

by whitedirtyangel



Category: Neon Genesis Evangelion
Genre: Arranged Marriage, College AU, M/M, Really just some stupid kawoshin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-16
Updated: 2015-08-05
Packaged: 2018-04-09 16:15:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4355789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitedirtyangel/pseuds/whitedirtyangel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kaworu tried to bring Shinji happiness by jumping into different lives and universes, and he ended up in a timeline where everything is different. Really different, because in this life, Shinji was his for the taking.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! It's my first work here, and it's kawoshin! I recently crawled my way to kawoshin hell, and here's something to celebrate my love for these miserable gay babies.

_How long has it been?_

He leaned back on the recliner, a wallet-sized photo on his hand. He'd been staring at it for hours, as if it has the answer to the questions of the universe.

Maybe it did. Or at least, the person in the picture is the answer to his questions.

_Has it been 300 cycles? I no longer remember._

Beside him, the telephone suddenly rang, interrupting his thoughts. He glared at it, knowing well who the caller is. There's only one person who knows that this phone number exists.

He pressed the loudspeaker button after a small sigh.

"Yes?" he asked.

"You've been ignoring my e-mails."

"I don't have time to answer them. I'm too busy." He gently tucked the photo inside his wallet, smiling at it with fondness in his eyes.

A heavy sigh was heard on the other line. "Have you found someone you like?"

Yes, he wants to answer, but he didn't want this old man prying on his affairs. "No. I told you I'm too busy for relationships."

"Not even a single date? You're not getting any younger, you know that."

"Dad," he stressed. "I'm only 20 years old. What the hell are you talking about?" He stood up and walked towards his coffee pot, pouring himself a mug of miserable and sleepless night once again.

"But I don't want you to be holed up in your office. You're too brilliant for that. I have no doubts that you'll be able to run the company perfectly, but for God's sake, you're wasting your potential."

"What even-"

"So I decided to contact Ikari, and set you up with his son."

He stiffened in shock and dropped his mug as he was about to take a sip, said mug crashing on the floor and dousing his bare feet with bubbling coffee. He yelped and stepped backwards but ultimately slipped on the floor, his ass soaking with the hot beverage. Roaring laughter and what sounded like a fist pounding on a wooden desk echoed in his room, and he glared at the phone.

"I knew you were gay, Kaworu."

"Goddammit."

* * *

 

Kaworu Nagisa did not know what triggered for this massive change to happen, but he wasn't complaining. Not too much.

He did his best to leap through different times and universes, in order to bring Shinji the happiness he truly deserve. He failed multiple times, resulting in tragic death and more pain for Shinji, which he wanted to smack himself for. He had been reborn as different entities, mostly of him being Kaworu Nagisa, the Fifth Child and the last Angel, the rebirth of Adam. But there had been times when he was no one important, a bystander to a story he could never make an impact in. At those lifetimes, he tried to find Shinji, but failed. So he lived, although the catch was that after being reborn, his memories of his final 24 hours were erased. And most revelations important enough to save him from fucking up his destiny happens within those last 24 hours. Who the hell gave these conditions?

Anyway, in some of his timelines, he managed to save Shinji from despair, and those memories of success were the ones that were urging him to go on, that there were still mistakes to be fixed in order to truly make his beloved happy. And with some sort of a twisted joke (or perhaps a miracle?), he ended up in this timeline, where Eva and Angels do not exist.

He was an abandoned child, the result of two hormonal teenagers who can't handle responsibility, and was dumped in a church for good-hearted fellows to keep. Thinking about it, Kaworu would roll his eyes so hard his head would ache. Lilim of this century sure have the problem of too much freedom in their hands.

He was brought into an orphanage, where he grew up longing for Shinji. Five years later, he was adopted by none other than Lorenz Keel, and for a split second, he felt chill running on his spine; hundreds of memories of being experimented and left naked for others to ogle inside an LCL tube made him wary of this old man. But it was the start of surprises.

Lorenz Keel runs a handful of companies, but due to an unfortunate accident, became sterile. Of course, he wouldn't want to leave his job to some incompetent worker beneath him, so he adopted several children, all trained to become leaders, and Kaworu was assigned to a company named Marduk Institute. After being brought back to a mansion, he was immediately told of the reason why he was adopted. He wasn't really surprised at this, knowing that Keel is a manipulative asshole from before, but what shocked him was that he grew up with a happy childhood, and his transition from a child to a teenager was painless and angst-free. Keel was actively participating at the lives of his adopted children. He spoiled them with attention and material goods, and still managed to instill discipline and humility in them.

Kaworu was shocked, but happy.

If there was anything worth noting in his childhood, it was his meeting Shinji Ikari.

Yui and Gendo Ikari runs the infamous Nerv, an automotive manufacturer, and an affiliate of Seele Enterprise. They're good friends with Keel, and occasionally visits them. It was during their visit that he had the faithful encounter with the love of his life.

Shinji was so small, so fragile, and so cute when they first met. The brunet was five years old at that time, and was grossly interested at Kaworu's drawings of Angels that were taped on his bedroom wall. They spent the afternoon doodling on his sketchbook, and eating chocolate ice cream which Kaworu sneaked in from the kitchen. Kaworu felt his heart swell whenever Shinji smile at him, and he was overjoyed at the fact that he was the reason of that smile.

The Ikari's only came over a few times, though, and Kaworu isn't a child forever. He was delegated with more tasks, and once he was given his own office, he became a workaholic, wanting to present a good image for himself and to impress Shinji if they ever meet under business conditions.

During his teenage years, he was constantly being baited into dating by Keel and his adopted siblings, but he refused every time. It became troublesome when Rei joined in the teasing, except she's constantly referring single men for him to date, to the point it turned into a running joke in their disjointed family, though no one assumed he was really gay.

Apparently, Keel is alright with that too.

One day, he received an e-mail from Rei with an attached image of Shinji, who is now a handsome young man, and he choked on his juice when he saw that picture. This was the boy he loved so much, and he had bloomed into what the younger generation Lilim called "chick magnet". He learned that he and Rei are classmates in Medieval Literature class, and that he's still single.

Kaworu may or may not have sighed in relief at that information.

For some reason, this information reached Keel, and that's how the former Angel ended up with a broken mug, a pair of pajamas wet with coffee, and a strange mixture of thrill and dread.

* * *

 

Shinji Ikari is nothing special.

He took up a business course in the insistence of his parents, and since he's the only child, he could not refuse this. He's sort-of friends with the campus princess Asuka Langley Shinikami, the literature nerd Rei Ayanami, and the volleyball captain Mari Makinami Illustrious. He did not know how this happened, but the male population envies his position, of being close to the three popular women of the university.

He could not care less, for these three were the reason he was constantly at the receiving end of death threats and random mugging. He never signed up to be a freaking helper of freshmen who wanted to confess to them, or the seniors who wanted to bed them. He'd rather be eating Misato's cooking than doing anything related to that three.

It was also because of his position that he could not get a single date. The girls he asked out always turn him down. He became Toji's laughingstock, but (hopefully) not in an insulting way. He became even more discouraged when he learned that Kensuke got laid during their second year, and he no longer bothered himself with the dating scene, as much as he want to.

He felt a bit different that morning.

Since the university was a walking distance from the Ikari household, he did not bother signing up for dormitory, and he was thankful for that. The smell of coffee and real food breakfast was enough to keep him grounded at home. He got up from his bed, checking the clock while trying to tame his bedhead. One hour and thirty minutes before the first period.

He marched down to the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. Chatter came from said room, and he looked up to see Asuka and Mari talking with his mom. Rei was quietly eating toast.

Great.

Asuka saw him and smirked. "Welcome back to the land of living."

"Thanks," he groaned and walked towards his mother, who gave him a bright smile and a mug of steaming espresso. He plopped down beside his dad, who is reading the newspaper with an unbreakable concentration, as usual.

"Morning, dad."

"Morning." He was handed a plate of toast, which he gratefully took.

After eating, he took a quick shower and changed. He picked up his bag from his room and waved goodbye to his parents, the three girls already outside waiting for him. They started chatting again as they walk, the sun for once not being a horrible spotlight for them. There was a gentle breeze, and Shinji felt thankful for the weather, but the strange feeling he got when he woke up won't go away.

"Are you alright, Ikari-kun?"

He smiled at Rei, scratching his cheek. "Ah, yeah."

As they approach the entrance of the campus, a particularly strong blow of wind greeted them, and everyone stopped walking to make sure their things won't get blown away. Shinji closed his eyes as dust started flying everywhere, his arms raised to block his face.

"Ah, oh no!"

An orange scarf flew past Shinji, and he looked back to see a man chasing after the scarf. Poor you, he thought, and dusted himself as the wind slowly calmed down. He heard Asuka complain and Mari laugh, and they resumed walking. The four of them separated when they reached the main building, and Shinji jogged towards the lecture hall of his first class.

Analytic Geometry for the morning, and he already felt tired just thinking about it.

The hall was filled halfway, quiet murmurs of conversation filling the air. He sat somewhere far from the crowd, not wanting to be approached. He didn't have any close friends in this class, so he tried to have as little social interaction as possible. He opened his bag and pulled out a clear file folder, filled with documents about Nerv. His dad gave it to him last night to study, and it was quite interesting minus the boring contracts.

Twenty minutes later, he finished half of the contents of the folder as the professor arrived. He sighed in relief that the seat beside him was still empty, and was about to mutter a thank you prayer to whoever is in charge of his situation when a voice suddenly spoke near him.

"Is it alright to sit here?"

He stared up and was met with bright red eyes and a smile so inappropriate for a 7:30 AM class. He recognized the orange scarf from earlier, wrapped hurriedly around the guy's neck.

Shinji felt the strange feeling from earlier return, except three times more intense. A bead of sweat ran down the side of his face, and he nodded, moving his folder away to clear up some table space. The guy thanked him and quickly slipped down to sit next to him, placing a small notebook on the table. He was wearing a blue long jacket, a collared white shirt with a blue stripe running down in the middle where the buttons are aligned, and gray pants. The color coordination seemed off to him, but it kind of worked for this guy, whose hair was a fluffy grayish white mass.

He snapped his eyes away when the professor began speaking, and felt his face flush. That was really shameless of him, to ogle to openly at someone. He sneaked another look towards the guy's direction, and saw something written on the front of his notebook.

_'Kaworu Nagisa'_

* * *

 

Up next:

"Wait, I'm... I'm engaged to him?!"

"What? I thought we're only supposed to be on date."

"Ha, fooled you two. Surprise!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhh, I got swamped with school work and I couldn't find the time to write, sorry this took long ;_;
> 
> also did you know that my Up Next columns are like the preview in the end of Rebuild movies: they don't actually show up on the next release ahaha I'm sorry
> 
> this chapter ft. too many text messages

Shinji groaned when he looked at his watch and saw that only 15 minutes had passed since the start of the lecture. He felt eyes looking at him from his side, and even though he wanted to return the stare, steeled himself and watched the professor speak without actually registering what he was saying. When those eyes moved away from his, he gently exhaled.

This Kaworu Nagisa, no matter how Shinji want to deny, is making his heart beat faster and his skin prickle with an unknown sensation. He picked up his pen and doodled on the back of a Nerv document, trying to ignore the loud thumping on his chest. He secretly moved his eyes to look at the other boy's part of the long desk, and saw his pale hands writing swiftly down the notebook, rough sketches of the diagrams on the side. Damn, his handwriting is neat and pretty.

Maybe he should've felt guilty for not paying attention, but it's the first time a guy has caught his attention and won't let go of it, and he consoled himself with the fact that he bought the ridiculously expensive textbook for this class and that he can always catch up with some reading for later. For now, he occupied his time with observing his seatmate be a responsible student.

_He looks familiar, though I can't remember if I've seen him before._

_From a dream, maybe?_

He continued doodling until he got to the next page. For some reason, Shinji found out that drawing his nervousness away seem to work. He's not good enough to be called artistic, but he once got Rei to smile with a weird penguin drawing on the back of his notebook, and he's quite proud. He heard a small commotion on a few tables away from him, and he straightened up to avoid being called, his hand still moving in attempt to look like he's listening.

When he checked to see that he hadn't drawn on the desk, he saw that he had drawn a pyramid with a square base. A distant memory flickered in his eyes; a small room with its walls covered in paper taped to it, of drawings of creatures he could not categorize but looked familiar, of someone who sat beside him during a warm afternoon eating a bowl of smuggled chocolate ice cream. He tried to remember the face of that someone, but every time he tried to, the face blurs out even more.

That person... he sounds like someone important.

Curse his lack of photographic memory.

He tried to remember what else was in that room, and sketched the ones he can. The square pyramid has another pyramid connected to its base, only upside down. A ball with several white lines overlapping each other. A giant eye?

"That looks nice."

He froze when he felt his seatmate lean closer to him, staring down at his doodles. A hurricane appears to be brewing in the pit of his stomach, and he felt his face flush. He slowly turned to look at him, and was greeted by a gentle smile.

"What's your name?" he asked.

_Calm down, Shinji._

"I-Ikari... Ikari Shinji."

He hummed softly, his voice low enough to not attract the attention of others. "Nice to meet you, Ikari Shinji. I'm Nagisa Kaworu, please just call me Kaworu."

Shinji smiled, this guy is friendly enough. "Thanks, then call me Shinji, too."

He was given another smile, although this one is brighter and made the brunet squirm in his seat. Kaworu Nagisa. That also sounds familiar, but Shinji doesn't want to assume anything. Kaworu bowed his head and ripped a page of his notebook, scrawling something Shinji can't see. At this moment, Shinji noticed that there were people staring at them, some out of curiosity, others filled with something that made him uncomfortable.

He felt something nudge at his arm, and saw that a folded notebook page was pushed towards him. He shot Kaworu a questioning glance.

Kaworu just smiled.

Shinji carefully picked up the note and unfolded it.

 _'Wanna get some coffee after class?'_ was written beside a chubby round creature with a beak-like mask and stick arms and legs, its hands holding a cup.

The blush from earlier came back, spreading down to his neck. Behind him, he heard a loud gasp followed by hushed whispers. Shinji closed the note and immediately tucked it inside his folder.

Kaworu was still smiling at him, a hint of redness in his pale cheeks. Shinji nodded meekly and went back to filling up the back of Nerv papers with his masterpieces.

_It's just coffee, right?_

* * *

 

Asuka was busy writing down the formula flashed on the projector screen when she felt a vibration on the long desk she was writing on. She saw Mari lift up her phone and swipe her thumb across the screen, her bespectacled eyes roaming left and right. The redhead elbowed her gently.

"We're in class, idiot."

"Shh, I know, but I've been hearing some interesting gossip."

She blinked. Mari usually disliked gossips because she finds them useless and laughable when getting the truth is much more easier. Asuka looked around and saw some girls huddled together, looking down on their phones, and felt offended. Sure, Organic Chemistry is kinda boring, but that's just plain disrespectful. She felt the urge to smash their heads together.

"Oh my gosh."

"What?"

A shit-eating grin appeared on Mari's face. She turned the phone towards her.

A snapchat of Shinji blushing while talking to a cute guy was displayed, the caption reads _'Shinji boy about to get laid'_.

"What the fuck? Who's that guy?"

"I dunno, but he seems really interested in Shinji." Mari snickered, lowering the phone and pushing it towards her.

"You saw him before?"

"Nope, I think he's a transfer or someone just sitting in for lectures."

Asuka glared at the picture. "He better not be screwing with Stupid Shinji or else."

* * *

 

Kaworu twirled his pen between his fingers, patiently waiting for the lecture to end. The brunet beside him decided to finally participate as a student in class and pulled out his own notebook to jot down notes.

Shinji is so cute.

A small chime came from his jacket's pockets, and he pulled out his phone but kept it under the desk. A text message from Rei?

_'It's too early for this.'_

He blinked.

_'What are you talking about?'_

_'You're the talk of the town right now.'_

_'Really?'_

_'Take care of Ikari-kun.'_

_'How did you know I'm with him?'_

_'You're too easy, Fifth.'_

He smiled.

_'I probably am. Thanks, I will.'_

* * *

 

_It's just coffee, calm down._

After the class, Shinji quickly pushed his papers down his bag and hurried out of the room, Kaworu following suit. They walked side by side to the nearest cafe, falling into a comfortable discussion of the weather.

Shinji went to the counter to order two espressos and the breakfast special while Kaworu looked for a table. He plopped down after finding a vacant one, propping his arms on the table and resting his chin atop them.

It might just be his sweet delusion, but Shinji barely changed over the lifetimes. He's still the same easily-flustered boy, except this time, he passed the childish charm he had when he was 14, and bloomed into something much more beautiful. Maybe this time, things would finally work out in their favor.

Shinji found him easily and sat in front of him, his cheeks flushed lightly but overall had a relaxed expression.

"Sorry it took long."

Kaworu waved his hand. "No, it's okay. It's not too long anyway."

Shinji smiled. "You're not a student here, right, Kaworu?"

"No, I'm not." He laughed. "I'm here to visit someone."

He blinked. It's not really unusual for a visitor to attend lectures, but really, Math in the morning is not a common preference.

Something ticked inside him.

"Ah, but if you're meeting with someone..."

"It's alright, they told me we'll be meeting at lunch."

Shinji sighed in relief as the waitress arrived and place down their orders on the table. He recognized her, Hikari Horaki, and she gave him a knowing smile.

_Asuka will be hearing about this._

"What's your major, Shinji?" Kaworu asked as he carefully picked up his sandwich from the plate.

"Business," he replied, lifting his cup to his lips. "I'm nothing big, though. My parents want me to take this course, and I really don't have anything in mind when I applied for college anyway."

Kaworu nibbled at his sandwich, a thoughtful look in his face. "You shouldn't undermine yourself. I'm sure you'll be successful whichever path you take."

He blushed. This is getting out of hand. "T-Thanks. Um... what about you?"

"Same, I'm a business major too, but I'm already working." He put down the sandwich after eating half of it, and sipped his coffee.

They continued chatting leisurely, slowly finishing their orders. Shinji was never good with small talk, but he felt at ease with Kaworu. It was as if the other man won't find his clumsiness in speaking as an annoyance.

Shinji smiled.

He's happy he met this person.

* * *

 

When afternoon came, they parted ways, but not before having an embarrassing chat that Shinji was sure to haunt him until later.

"Hey, Shinji," he said as they were walking back to the main building. Shinji hummed, an inquiry. Kaworu looked at him sheepishly. "Can I get your number? I wanna talk to you when you're free."

After a minute of stuttering and trying to keep his blood from rising in his head, he nodded, and they exchanged numbers before Kaworu set off to meet someone.

It was precisely at that moment that he was seen by Asuka, an eyebrow raised in question. Shinji felt his back getting damp with sweat.

"Care to tell us who's that hunk you're with?" Mari grinned, sipping her milk tea as they walk towards a bench shaded by a large tree.

"I-It's a visitor, he was sitting in my morning class."

"And you guys got friendly enough to go out on a date?" Asuka remarked. "Didn't knew you were batting for the other team, Shinji."

He sputtered, his eyes widening. "It's not like that! He just asked me if I want to have coffee!"

"Aww, our puppy's already grown up," Mari sniffled, dramatically removing her glasses and wiping a nonexistent tear from her eyes.

"S-Shut up!"

They kept bickering while waiting for Rei, when Asuka received a message she won't be able to join them for lunch. They stood up and walked to the cafeteria, deciding on what to eat.

"But cafeteria food is shit," Mari murmured under her breath after deciding on pasta. She nudged Shinji on the side. "You should really make us some food sometime! I miss your cooking."

"Er, okay, but you guys buy the ingredients."

"Aw yeah! You better fire up your kitchen, pup!"

Shinji sighed and felt his phone vibrate several times. He unlocked the screen and saw two messages.

(1) Kaworu  
(2) Mom

He opened the first message, not knowing what to expect.

_'I know this is quite forward, but are you free this Saturday? There's a new restaurant near my office and I was invited to it's opening. The owner said I should bring a guest. It's okay if you're not available.'_

Shinji absentmindedly moved through the line, rereading the messages several times. He couldn't decide on what he's feeling right now.

_This is... This is an invitation to a date... right?_

He reached the counter before he could come up with an answer, and he ordered a salad and iced tea, following behind the two girls as he carried his order to the table.

_Maybe I'll reply later._

He tapped the second message to open it.

_'Shinji, dear, do you have plans for later? We're gonna have a business meeting tonight, and Dad wants you to be there to meet our business partners. Can you come home early? We'll be eating out for dinner.'_

"Who is it?"

He raised his head and saw Asuka trying to peek on his phone. "Mom. She said I need to go home early because I'm invited in a business meeting."

Mari whistled. "Damn, must be difficult being the heir of Nerv."

* * *

 

He got home 40 minutes earlier than usual, and hurried inside his house.

"I'm home," he announced as he place his shoes on the rack behind the door.

"Welcome back, dear," he heard his mother from somewhere. He walked to the living room and saw his father reading some documents. He greeted him, and he nodded before standing up.

"Shinji, I need to ask you something."

This question usually ends up with him in trouble. Shinji grimaced internally.

"What is it, Dad?"

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"A girlfr-... wait, what?!"

"Girlfriend."

His face flushed with embarrassment. "N-No, I don't have one! It's not like I can get a date anyway." _Except maybe with Kaworu...?_

Gendo nodded. "Do you have someone you like?"

_Oh my god, we're not having 'the talk' right now, are we?!_

"N-No..."

"Anyone at all? Not Asuka, Mari, or Rei?"

"I-I don't l-like them like that!"

Gendo nodded again, and this time, he sat down and sighed. "There's a suit in your room. Go take a shower, Mom will be finished in a minute."

Shinji could hear his heart racing. _That's it? No more nerve-wracking questions?_ "Okay..." he said under his breath, and went up to his room.

He dropped his bag on the foot of his bed, wondering what the hell just happened. And then he remembered that Kaworu asked him something and he still haven't replied.

"Oh no," he muttered, quickly typing on the screen as he sat on his swivel chair.

_'I'm free on Saturday. Just text me what time and where.'_

* * *

 

Up Next:

"Oh, oh, what do you think about this? It looks pretty, right? It fits on Shinji-"

"Mom! That's a wedding dress!"

"...Not bad. I like the design."

"Not you too, Dad!"

"Shinji, you must not run away."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is waaay overdue, I'm so sorry ;_;  
> Also thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapters!
> 
> Some notes on the characterization: I used the they/them pronouns on Israfel as a reference in the Campus Apocalypse manga where Israfel are twins but one angel. Gendo is also based on the CA manga before the lab accident because actually-responsible-and-loving-parent FTW
> 
> this chapter ft. too much smiles

  
The steam from the shower fogged the glass divider, which served as an impromptu writing board for Kaworu. He carefully wrote Shinji's name in the fog, and smiled as it was drenched away by the water coming from the shower head. His hair was miraculously down, for once. Rei would probably laugh at him.

After a few minutes of questioning the reality of chicken nuggets, he turned the shower off and stepped out of the bathroom. He shrugged on a fluffy white bathrobe and pulled the towel off the rack. When he entered his room, he saw Sachiel sitting on his bed, thumbing on his phone.

"I heard you got a date tonight."

"Mhmm. Set up by Dad, unfortunately."

Sachiel laughed. "Ikari Shinji, huh? Cute. I didn't know you're one to relive childhood sweethearts, Kaworu."

He dropped the towel on his head and vigorously dried his hair. "You remember him?"

"Duh, you stole my ice cream for him, of course I'll remember."

"That was yours?"

"No shit Sherlock."

Kaworu grinned. "Sorry, though if it helps, that ice cream helped a lot."

"Bastard." A flying pillow was aimed at him, and he maneuvered in time for it to miss. "Apology accepted. Oh by the way, that old man wants you to wear the suit he sent this morning. Looks pretty expensive too."

"Suit? Where?"

"On your closet."

Kaworu blinked and looked at the door of his walk-in closet. He was out the whole day, so he did not notice that. He opened the door and saw the new suit hanging neatly beside the door. There was a small box perched on the wooden shelf beside it where he usually place random trinkets, and a note attached on the top of the box.

'Wear this too' it says on a familiar handwriting.

He removed the note and opened the box, a sharp inhale when the silver watch caught the light and sparkled. "What's the occasion?" He asked out loud.

"Hmm?" Footsteps loudly approached the closet. "Oh, wow. Old man sure approves."

"What?"

"Stop asking questions and get dressed already." Kaworu stuck his tongue out, and did not miss the pillow attack Sachiel launched at him.

* * *

 

The White Moon Fine Dining has been the go-to place for personal meetings and family affairs of Keel and his children, while its sister company, The Black Moon, is the default choice for business-related dinners. Both are owned by Israfel, and they're proud of its success. Kaworu liked the food, and won't hesitate to bring Shinji here. Tonight's dinner will be at the White Moon according to Keel, so he prepared in advance and bought Israfel a small gift of thanks for the special service they will likely get tonight.

Israfel gave him an unimpressed look as Kaworu grinned. "Brother, you know of all people, that I love having you over here. Of course I'll treat you specially! Why do you still feel the need to give me gifts?" they ranted but took the gift anyway.

"I won't calm down, though, if you refused. I like it here, and I want you to know that."

Israfel laughed. "Alright, fine." Kaworu kissed their cheek and hugged them, patting their back before asking for their table.

They led him to another room separated by tinted glass walls, with soft lighting and a great view of the city and its colorful lights. Keel was already there, speaking to someone on his phone. He nodded at Kaworu and gestured for him to sit down.

Kaworu looked around with his eyebrows knitted together. There were five chairs, two on their side and three on the opposite. _I thought this was a date between me and Shinji? Why are there...?_

Oh no.

"Yes, yes, thank you." Keel laughed and bid goodbye to whoever is on the other line. He turned around when Israfel walked in holding a notepad, followed by a group of men wearing black tuxedos and carrying musical equipment. "Are the preparations ready?"

"Yeah, everything is in order."

"What... What preparations?" He asked nervously and Israfel smiled.

"Well, we got a new special course and we want to try it out for tonight. Dad said it's alright, don't worry. Oh, there's a new dessert too, so the main course will be a little lighter than usual. The jazz band is here to set the atmosphere," they nodded at the men setting up the equipment in the corner of the room. Kaworu was more than confused. "Trust me, brother, I won't disappoint you. Although, I didn't know you already have someone! Rei was right about your preference in men." At this, the white-haired man blushed. "Though you're going quite fast with the whole meeting-the-parents, I support your decision, and I know the others too. It's like what you said before: everybody finds love in the end." They punctuated with a dreamy sigh.

Kaworu felt himself start to sweat despite the blasting air conditioner, his face paler than ever. "What on earth are you talking about-"

The door opened, and the Ikari family gracefully walked in. Kaworu stood up in greeting, his eyes zeroing on Shinji, who was looking equally bewildered.

Israfel greeted them and led them to their seats. They shot Kaworu one last smile before exiting to the kitchen, and Kaworu aggressively wished that he could telepathically call for help or activate his AT Field and fly back to the moon.

Keel welcome them enthusiastically, shaking hands with Gendo and Shinji, and a brief embrace for Yui. Kaworu did the same, although after shaking hands with Shinji, he stared at him for what seemed like years, before smiling and letting go of his hand.

Once they're all seated, Shinji stared at him like a deer caught in the headlights, his eyes screaming for help. Kaworu felt his face mirror the same horrified expression.

* * *

 

The food was delicious, and he ought to tell Israfel later. After the main course was finished, they were served with a slice of dulce de leche roll cake and a plate of colorful macaroons. The sweetness was just right, and he might have calmed down if only Shinji would stop staring at him while blushing like crazy.

Keel and the Ikari couple were pleasantly discussing business, with Kaworu speaking up in between to give opinions and insight of the current status of the company he's handling. He smiled despite the nervousness, and he did his best not to take up Shinji's apparent invitation for a staring contest. A glass of sweet red wine later, and the trial began.

Keel cleared his throat, a coy grin in his lips. "It seems like your son's lovestruck," followed by a loud laugh that made Shinji stop staring, his eyes wide and his whole face redder than before. He shifted uncomfortably at his seat, looking at his lap. Kaworu wants to explode.

Yui gently touched his son's arm. "It's alright, Shinji. Once you're married, you can look all you want." Gendo snickered, of all things, and the brunet wished for the ground to just swallow himself now.

Wait, what...

Shinji's head snapped up to look at his mother. "Married?"

Kaworu felt his nervousness vanish, replaced with a numbing dread, as if someone forced him to swallow a rock.

"Yeah. We want to see if you would like Kaworu-kun, and you seemed to be so taken." Yui giggled, her dainty fingers covering her lips.

"I...I t-thought this is a business meeting!"

"Well, we talked about business earlier, right? Though it seems you find Kaworu-kun more interesting than the state of our executive department."

"T-That's not what I'm talking about!" He protested, but his voice softened at the end in admittance of defeat.

"It's alright, Shinji." Gendo patted his shoulder. "That's exactly how I was when I first saw your mom." The three elders laughed, of fucking course.

Kaworu picked up his glass of water, elbowing his adoptive father. "I thought this was suppose to be a date." He muttered angrily through clenched teeth.

"Well, it's all going to end to marriage anyway, why bother taking the long route? Besides, you're already 20 and a bachelor, maybe Shinji will spice up your life." He could probably crush the glass if he focused his energy on not strangling this old man. "Anyway, Shinji-kun, I heard that you don't have a girlfriend, I hope you don't mind that I'm in favor of you being Kaworu's spouse."

"W-Wha-"

"Dad!"

"What? I thought you said you liked him?"

"H-Huh?"

Keel turned to Shinji. "Heh, you probably don't remember anymore, but you played with Kaworu when you're still a child. Never thought he would end up falling in love for a childhood friend, eh?"

"...Hah?!"

"Oh, wow, that's so romantic of you, Kaworu-kun!"

"Cherishing such old ties... I have good faith you'll take care of Shinji."

"Dad?! What the heck?!"

Can he initiate some kind of Impact now? He looked down on his fork and kinda missed the Lance of Longinus. Maybe he could stab himself in the hand if he tried hard enough.

He took a deep breath, stood up from his seat and bowed lowly, before looking up at the Ikari's with a bright smile and a faint blush in his cheeks. Fuck it, might as well put up his angel face if he can't escape. _I'm sorry Shinji, I hope this will make you happy._

"Thank you so much, Mr. and Mrs. Ikari. This didn't turned the way I want it to be, but thank you for giving me permission to be with Shinji. I promise I will take care of him and make him happy."

Yui smiled as if she's 18 and in love for the first time again, her eyes shimmering with tears and her hands clasped together. Gendo nodded sternly, bearing a small smile. Keel had a proud grin in his face. From the corner of the room, he saw Israfel recording the whole thing with a camera.

Shinji was gaping at him as if he became a giant white being trying to bring forth destruction.

Fuck it, he mentally patted himself in the back.

* * *

 

For some goddamn reason, the three elder businessmen thought it would be funny to send Kaworu and Shinji in a hotel to spend their first night together there. Before leaving the restaurant, Gendo tapped Shinji at the shoulder and gestured his pocket, before leading Yui by her waist to the exit. Keel told them where they should head to, and gave them the key to one of the rooms, before leaving to, quote, "celebrate the deflowering of Kaworu Nagisa". Kaworu may or may not choked on his own spit.

Shinji seemed to be taking this less nervously than earlier. He did not protest at all, and smiled only while Kaworu apologized all the way to their room.

The room was big, and like their booth at the restaurant, had a great view of the city, only on the opposite side. Shinji had been to expensive hotels before, when his parents would bring him to business trips during vacations. He liked this one, despite the familiarity of it. He sat down on the king-sized bed, looking out on the ceiling-to-floor window framed with cream-colored drapes. Kaworu excused himself to the bathroom, and seemed to be taking his time. Shinji couldn't blame him. Everything happened too fast, and he couldn't believe that Kaworu had just said that. Also the fact that he used to be childhood friends with him; why did he not mention that earlier when they got coffee? _I guess he was trying to surprise me._

The bathroom door opened, and Kaworu came out, his face looking recently washed and the hair on his nape sticking together from the dampness of his skin. He smiled at Shinji and sat down next to him. The brunet felt his heart beat erratically.

"Um... sorry about that, earlier." Kaworu began, his eyes cast down on his shoes. "I didn't really know what to say, and I didn't want your parents getting the wrong impression. Also... I really didn't know what to do, because I thought Dad was only...uh, p-planning a date for us." He felt his face heat up, and he looked away while Shinji stare at him, mesmerized. "B-But I mean it. What I said earlier. T-That's not a lie, alright? I'm sorry I didn't say that I know you when we met this morning. I was really nervous and I... um..."

Shinji nodded, even though Kaworu wasn't looking at him. "Yeah, it's okay. I'm just shocked that I'm engaged now." He laughed softly, and the white-haired man finally understood why cheap romantic novels often describe this feeling as having his entire being destroyed and brought back with delicate hands, without a single missing piece. He felt so weak for this boy, and yet so strong at the same time.

The silence that fell between felt comfortable and familiar as they gazed at the stars, the lights of the city that never sleeps blurred in edges of their visions.

* * *

Up Next:

"So, umm... how do you want this?"

"Uh, how about on the floor?"

"Won't it hurt our backs?"

"Maybe not, if we put some pillows. Ah, the comforter too."

"Okay..."

"Oh, I guess I have to remove this."

"W-Wait!"

"Sorry!"

"Hmm... it's kinda uncomfortable."

"Oh no, just lie down like this. Here, it will hurt less for your hips."

"L-Like this?"

"Yeah, like that."

"... ..."

"... ..."

"Thanks."

"No problem, I like watching the stars too."


End file.
